Apples are undoubtedly very healthy and very therapeutic fruits, and health benefits of apples are really numerous. These fruits can improve our digestion, give us an opportunity to enjoy antioxidant properties and aid weight loss. Apples are great to those who suffer from type 2 diabetes. In addition to all the curative properties, a recent research has shown that daily consumption of just 1 apple can assist us in preventing such health condition as muscle atrophy which is connected with aging and can cause a lot of discomfort but still can’t be cured.

A group of scientists at the University of Iowa, leaded by Dr. Christopher Adams carried out a series of experiments and discovered that due to the action of ursolic acid, which can be found in apple peel, these fruits can be used to support our body’s muscle building qualities, promote muscle growth and help us keep a strong and toned body. The properties of this substance are especially valuable for the elderly who begin naturally losing body muscle mass and have a condition known as muscle atrophy.

“We studied muscle gene activity in people with atrophy and used that information to find chemicals that might block atrophy,” says C. Adams, UI endocrinologist and senior author of the study. The scientists worked on conforming a theory that ursolic acid works by reprogramming the activities of genes which cause muscle atrophy and compensate the body mass with extra fat built up. “Interestingly, although ursolic acid increased muscle weight in mice, it did not increase total body weight, and further investigation showed that mice fed ursolic acid had less body fat than mice that were not fed the compound,” Dr. Adams says. The specialists are getting ready to try their scientific theory on humans and check out if it is going to work. The findings of the research were published in the recent issue of the journal Cell Metabolism.